Giant Anteaters

Myrmecophaga tridactyla

About the Giant Anteaters

The clue’s in the name when it comes to giant anteaters: these remarkable mammals are able to eat 30,000 ants and termites a day, burrowing into ant hills and termite mounds with their long claws and picking up the insects with long, sticky tongues. Giant anteaters’ tongues measure up to 50cm long, and can flick into nests up to 150 times a minute to slurp up ants.

Habitat and Distribution

Giant anteaters are found in the grasslands and tropical forests of Central and South America.

Family Information

They mainly live alone in the wild, and have one baby at a time. Mother anteaters carry their babies on their backs until they’re old enough to walk.